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Monthly Archives: February 2016

A mixed income development on Riveplace Parcel 3 has gone before the Design Commission for its first Design Advice hearing. The project by Ankrom Moisan Architects will include two buildings: a 14 story west building with 209 units of affordable housing; and a 6 story east building with 162 units of market rate housing. The project is being jointly developed by San Francisco based affordable housing provider BRIDGE Housing and Portland based Williams & Dame. The landscape architects are Lango Hansen.

The ground floor of the east building will include 12,880 sq ft of retail space, which could be occupied by a neighborhood scale grocer. The east building will also contain 16,460 sq ft of “maker space”. Vehicular parking will be shared between the two buildings, with 163 spaces provided for the residents and 39 spaces for the retail spaces. Over 500 bicycle parking spaces will be provided.

In article titled “Gatekeepers of Portland character” KGW wrote about the Portland Design Commission, who are responsible for reviewing all major developments in the Central City.

The Oregonian reported on the approval of 4th and Harrison, which neighbors believe is in error. The approved building has a floor area ratio (FAR) of almost 9:1, achieved through a combination of the 6:1 base FAR for the site and 3:1 in bonuses. While the applicants and City staff believe that the site is eligible for bonuses, neighborhoods contend that it isn’t, and that any building on the site should have an FAR of no more than 6:1.

A bill that would allow local governments to implement Inclusionary Zoning has passed the Oregon Senate, reported The Oregonian. The bill will now heads to the House, where it is likely to pass.

The Hollywood Star News asked if the Rheinlander building on NE Sandy is to bite der dust? An Early Assistance application was recently received by the City for the site at 5035 NE Sandy Blvd, indicating that the restaurant site could be redeveloped into a mixed use building of 2 to 4 stories.

The Multnomah County Health Department Headquarters will be named after Gladys McCoy. According to the Willamette Week McCoy was “the first black member of the Portland school board, the first black member of the Multnomah County Board and the first black chair of that board.”

The Willamette Week reported that the A La Carts food cart pod has closed. The site at 4926 SE Division St is set to be redeveloped by Urban Development Group, who are planning a mixed use building with a branch of the Green Zebra grocery chain at the ground floor.

A transcript of a recent American Assets Trust earning call indicated that the company is “currently evaluating various alternatives” for how to move ahead with Oregon Square. Leases at the existing office buildings on the site are being allowed to expire in order to allow the site to be redeveloped. Stating that they do not wish to “act in haste, repent at leisure”, CEO and Chairman of the AAT Board of Directors Ernest Rady stated that they are “looking at every opportunity, including some office, including some apartments, including phasing it and we are now working on examining each of those alternatives. It is a real opportunity and we want to make sure we make the most of it.” A decision on how to move forward is expected by September.

Portland State University students will this April vote in a referendum over whether to increase student fees in order to finance a major renovation of the Smith Memorial Student Union, writes the PSU Vanguard. Two possible solutions include a $65 million renovation and a $90 million renovation.

The Portland Chronicle published photos of Otak Architects’ under construction Cook Street Lofts on N Vancouver Avenue. The site noted that this project and adjacent project The Woodswill “bring 154 units to the block previously home to three single-family dwellings”.

This is an updated version of an article originally written by Kurt Sevits.

Construction is underway on The Porter, a 299-room hotel in downtown Portland. The Porter is planned as part of Hilton’s Curio Collection, a brand launched in 2014 for independently-owned four- to five-star hotels. The developer of the project is The Widewaters Group, with design work by HC Architecture of Atlanta. According to the developer Level 16 of the building “will feature a high-end restaurant and lounge with large, covered outdoor terraces with spectacular views of the city.”

The Historic Landmarks Commission has reviewed designs for a proposed WorldMark on SW Naito Parkway. The 6 story project by SERA Architects would include a mixture of studio, one and two bedroom units, available to members of the WorldMark by Wyndham vacation ownership program. The project will include a retail space fronting on Naito Parkway. No vehicular parking is proposed.

A building permit was issued to LRS Architects for a portion of the work at the Towne Storage Builidng at 17 SE 3rd Ave:

Interior demolition and structural upgrade, no exterior or site work improvements included – structural upgrade/ seismic strengthening to ASCE 41-13 in preparation for future change of occupancy. No occupancy during construction.

A building permit was issued to Urban Development Group for a project at 5030 SE Stephens St (previously 1916 SE 50th Ave):

Construct new 4 story 83 unit apartment building with underground parking; associated site work

The Design Commission has approved a 15-story mixed-use development at 4th & Harrison, after four Design Advice hearings and two Design Review hearings. The 175’ tall building will provide 424 residential units, with a mix of studio, one, two and three bedroom apartments. At the ground level a 33,000 sq ft supermarket is planned, as well as an additional 5,000 sq ft retail space. 208 vehicular parking spaces are proposed, split between 137 spaces for the residents, and 71 for the supermarket / retail uses. An optional 4th parking level would provide an additional 80 spaces. The building will include 656 long term bicycle parking spaces.

The 12 story Framework building by Lever Architecture, planned for a site at NW 10th & Glisan in the Pearl

In an article titled “Wooden Buildings as Strong as Steel” Newsweek wrote about how Portland is leading the nation in the adoption of Cross-Laminated Timber (CLT). The article includes quotes from Ben Kaiser of PATH, architect and developer of Carbon12, and Thomas Robinson of Lever who is the architect for Framework in the Pearl and Albina Yard.

An article and photo gallery in the Portland Business Journal showed how CLT is made. Riddle-based D.R. Johnson Lumber Co is currently the only domestic lumber mill certified as capable of producing the wood panels.

The Portland Business Journal coveredBlock 75 Phase II, the next high-rise building planned for the Burnside Bridgehead. The Works Partnership designed building is the latest partnership between Beam Development and Urban Development + Partners.

The Portland City Council approved a realignment to the route of the proposed extension of SW Bond between the Tilikum Crossing and SW River Parkway. The extension, which will begin construction this year, allows OHSU projects including the Knight Cancer Research Buildingto move head.

The first residential tenants are moving into Park Avenue West, reported the Portland Business Journal. The TVA Architects designed building is now the fourth tallest building in Portland.

The Portland Development Commission is increasing its contribution to projects in Lents by $6.3 million, according to the Portland Business Journal. The projects include the Asian Health and Services Center by Holst Architecture, Oliver Stationby Ankrom Moisan Architects and 9101 SE Foster Rdby Hacker Architects. The developers behind Oliver Station have gained control of the Chevron station at SE 92nd and Foster, enabling the project to occupy the full block.

Commissioner Steve Novick wrote about an idea that is rapidly gaining traction as a way to bring affordability back to Portland’s neighborhoods. “Missing middle housing” is new term for old styles of development, currently prohibited in most of Portland, at a density between that of single family detached houses and large mid-rise apartment buildings. These include housing types such as rowhomes, courtyard apartments, triplexes, built to the same height and scale as single-family homes.

A post at Portland Shoupistas asked if the PDC’s $26 million garage at the Convention Center Hotel will be a money maker or a money loser. Though planned as revenue generator, the post points out that “just to break even, this garage will need to generate more than $12 per space every day of every year for 20 years, starting in 2020.”

KOIN reported that “Ivy Island may not be ‘gateway’ to St. Johns for long“. A street vacation in the St Johns neighborhood was approved this week. The vacation will allow the mixed use Union at St Johns building by Jones Architecture to move ahead, while creating a safer road layout.

Proposal is for four over one apartment building on the south block, a row of two story townhomes on the north block separated by a large plaza. Also requesting an additional 10 ft in height per the St. Johns plan 33.583.250.

A Pre-Application Conference has been scheduled to discuss a project at 829 N Russell St:

Pre-app conference for change in zone from IG1 to EX for apartment development.

DECA Architecture have requested a Pre-Permit Zoning Check for a project at 15023 SE Stark St:

Development of a four story 52 unit housing complex; a two story commercial medical office bldg and associated site work. On-site parking on an existing developed site.

Otak Architects have submitted a project at 2645 SE 50th Ave for building permit review:

New construction of a four story 121 unit apartment building with basement parking. With mechanical permit 16-119795-MT.

Joseph A Karman Architects have submitted a project at 5931 SE 52nd Ave for building permit review:

New 4406 sq ft, 1 story commercial building – shell permit only

A building permit was issued to Allied Works Architecture for the 1320 Broadwaybuilding:

Core and shell renovation of existing full block Oregonian building. Partial change of occupancy, convert basement offices to parking. New entrances and windows, new ramp to parking. Reinforce mezzanine for live loads, new opening in elevator shaft for new stop. Relocate existing generator. New restrooms, locker rooms, and showers.

The Multnomah County Board of Commissioners has been presented with early designs for the new Multnomah County Courthouse. The 17 story, $300 million project will replace the existing courthouse on SW 4th Avenue, which is considered seismically unsound and no longer fit for use. The architects for the project are Portland based SRG Partnership and New York based CGL RicciGreene. The landscape architects are PLACE.

Grant Park Village Phase II has gone before the Design Commission for its first Design Review hearing. The 5 story building by LRS Architects for developer Capstone Partners is proposed to include 163 residential units and 107 vehicular parking spaces. The landscape design for the project is by Lango Hansen.